Editing Media of Canada (section)

== Identity and Mass Media ==
According to John A. Irving,{{who|date=May 2024}} mass media functions differently in Canadian society because of a lack of collective identity; this is in reference to Canada's languages (and related cultures) as well as its proximity to the United States. Irving states that such cultural dualism means that only some of the population responds to the mass media in English, while the other portion remain uninfluenced by English-based media. In terms of the proximity to the United States, he explains that "most of the difficulties that threaten the mass media in Canada are the direct outcome of American economic and cultural imperialism."<ref>Irving, John A. (1969). ''Mass Media in Canada''. The Ryerson Press. p. 225.</ref> Because of the United States' overwhelming influence on Canadian mass media, Canada has not been able to form its own identity in the media. These two factors have slowed down the process of the creation of a Canadian community. Mass media help in forming a community through communication. When a large group of people is in communication with one another through media, an identifiable culture is formed. Individuals in dialectic experience a sense of membership and collective identity.<ref name="Irving 1969, p. 223">Irving 1969, p. 223</ref> A creative culture exists in Quebec for [[French Canadian]]s, but [[English Canadian]]s (that is, those who are not exposed to French culture) are hardly aware of it. The published works of French Canadian authors remain relatively unknown in nine of the ten provinces and have little influence outside of Quebec.<ref name="Irving 1969, p. 223" /> In addition to this, the [[Canadian Broadcasting Corporation]] operates two separate networks for radio and television; listeners and watchers of the English stations rarely listen to the French stations, and vice versa.

Irving claims that the most important problem facing Canada in terms of forming a genuine identity comes from its close proximity to the United States. It is difficult for a bilingual or multilingual country, such as Canada, Switzerland, or Belgium, to be so close to a country with one common language, such as the United States and England, because of the latter's influence on the former. Over ninety percent of the periodicals displayed on newsstands which sell more than 10,000 copies a month are American.<ref>Irving 1969, p.225</ref> Because of this overwhelming influence of the powerful United States, Canada has been significantly slowed down in forming its own unique identity.

Irving also mentions a third, less important reason for Canada's inability to form a genuine identity in history: distance and geographical regionalism. There are six distinct regions within the domain of Canada: the Atlantic, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies, British Columbia, and the northern territories. Because of the large distances between these regions, media could not spread throughout the whole country as effectively in the past. In the time of canoe transportation, this distance was a barrier to communication; with the age of the telegraph-railway, Canada finally began to edge towards becoming a proper, connected nation.<ref>Irving 1969, p.224</ref>